Is the SEC a league "Devoid of Parity"?

A series of tweets got me thinking this morning, starting off with this offering from @JBTexasEX to @CBSSports

@cbssports #SEC is a league devoid of parity. The conference’s bottom 8 teams went 0-30 against the Top 6 teams in 2012.

 

 

 

— J.B. Texas-Ex (@JBTexasEx) May 13, 2013

Replied to by our own @MBHORNSFAN

Hate when facts get in the way of opinion. RT @jbtexasex: @cbssports #SEC is a league devoid of (cont) tl.gd/lq76ds

 

 

 

— Big Mike (@MBHORNSFAN) May 13, 2013

And then answered by @tippy0911

@mbhornsfan Can’t judge an entire conf off just one yr. And we all have those bottom dwellers. It’s an ebb & flow but SEC>everyone else. May 13, 2013

Can you not judge the conference based off one year?  Probably not, and if you did the SEC homers would quickly assemble a torch and pitchfork party at your house. So I decided to go back through the 2006 season, when the SEC began its run of seven consecutive BCS National Championships, and analyze the data with some pretty simple parameters.

The top five teams by conference rank in each year were selected by finish or ranking, using the SEC’s own standings as a guide. The bottom seven teams regular season conference record was compiled. Each of the top five squads schedule was then reviewed to see how they fared against the bottom seven teams in the conference. Did the numbers show an inflation?  How bad was the bottom of the conference?  The numbers, though not as bad as 0-30, do speak volumes toward dismissal of the argument the conference is extremely tough top to bottom. One would expect the top teams, being in such a “rough” position year in and year out, would not fair any better than a 66% winning percentage against the other teams right? Not so much…..

[colored_box color=yellow]2011 SEC Football

Top 5 Teams – Alabama (6-0), Arkansas (5-0), LSU (5-0), South Carolina (5-1) , Georgia (7-0)

Combined Record of Bottom 7 Teams: 14-42

Top 5 Record versus Bottom 7: 28-1

2010 SEC Football

Top 5 Teams – Auburn (4-0), Arkansas (4-0), LSU (5-0), Alabama (4-0), South Carolina (4-1)

Combined Record of Bottom 7 Teams: 19-37

Top 5 Record vs Bottom 7: 21-1

2009 SEC Football

Top 5 Teams – Alabama (6-0), LSU (4-0), Ole Miss (3-3), Florida (6-0), Georgia (4-2)

Combined Record of Bottom 7 Teams: 19-37

Top 5 Record vs Bottom 7: 23-5

2008 SEC Football

Top 5 Teams – Florida (6-0), Georgia (6-0), Alabama (6-0), Ole Miss (4-2), Vanderbilt (4-2)

Combined Record of Bottom 7 Teams: 18-38

Top 5 Record vs Bottom 7: 26-4

2007 SEC Football

Top 5 Teams – Tennessee (5-1), Georgia (5-1), Florida (4-0), LSU (4-2), Auburn (4-1)

Combined Record of Bottom 7 Teams: 20-36

Top 5 Record vs Bottom 7: 22-5

2006 SEC Football

Top 5 Teams – Florida (5-0), Tennessee (5-0), Arkansas (5-0), Auburn (4-1), LSU (4-0)

Combined Record of Bottom 7 Teams: 17-39

Top 5 Record vs Bottom 7: 23-1[/colored_box]

Pretty convincing evidence its a top heavy league. 2011 Georgia is a perfect example, as the lost to South Carolina, then feasted on 7 wins against the dregs of the conference, giving them the ability to by pass a more deserving South Carolina to win the division. Who did the Georgia team beat? The worst 7 teams in the conference, Georgia Tech, Coastal Carolina, and New Mexico State. Truly a team worthy of playing for the SEC Championship.

The “Haves”, and its pretty clear who they are, feast on the “Have Nots” and get tons of credit from the media. Look at 2012 Mississippi State, who beat a murders row of cupcakes, were handed an undeserved #15 ranking, and then proceeded to get pile driven by the conference elite.

I’ll close with another interesting tweet from Oklahoma blogger Allen Kenney @BlantantHomerism - you want more worthless arguments: the b12 has six teams that have won bcs games since 2007. the sec has five. so what?

I am no Bob Stoops fan, but he was castrated by the media for not wanting their involvement in the selection of playoff teams, the same media who would tell you the 2011 SEC East Champion Georgia Bulldogs were an impressive team who’d have won it all in the other conferences. Same folks who would have you believe Mississippi State would have won the Big 12 or Big 10. Yeah….

Great football teams at the top?  Sure. Conference of the Gods?  Not so much.

Follow me on Twitter @Texas0205